Chapter 26 Summary

Tom hopes Marge will forget the cocktail party the following day, but she is determined to go. Tom hates making a spectacle of themselves, like two acrobats at a circus. Marge guzzles free martinis at the party, and Tom pretends he hardly knows her. The party is given by a second-rate dealer in antiques and bric-a-brac, and Tom reminds himself that being polite to such unsavory little men is part of being a gentleman. He entertains himself with thoughts of sailing to Greece in June.

Everyone at the party is eager to discuss Dickie's disappearance. The papers make no mention of a private detective from America, so Tom thinks that perhaps Mr. Greenleaf was not telling the truth. It was just one of those imaginary fears like believing Marge and Dickie were actually having an affair back in Mongibello, or the forgery scare...